Yada, yada, yada

I'm almost 2 weeks post-surgery and seeing the road ahead. Strangely, my hip is more sore than it was a week ago, but it comes and goes, changing from day to day. Right now I have the familiar achy feeling, not painful, just enough to know it's there. This past weekend I spent more time on my feet/crutches, so maybe that's the reason, but who knows. I gotta keep focused on the big picture here....

My stitches are out. After leaving several messages with my regular doc (not my OS, who's in Houston) he told me he wouldn't take them out, the little weenie. I should have told him there were only 2 stitches-- hip surgery? 2 stitches? He was probably imagining a 10-inch incision. So I took them out myself. You can find detailed info about anything on the web these days, and it was easy enough, literally took 2 minutes. My thinking: what's the worst that could happen? Seriously!

I've heard some advertisements for the Turkey Trot on the radio. Sigh.... I ran it last year with my son Banjo. It's one of the few races in Austin that has a "baby stroller division" and the competition is usually pretty stiff. There are guys who have run the 5 mile hilly course at 6:15 pace while pushing a stroller and their kid. Luckily, the competition wasn't quite as stiff last year, and we placed 1st, got a trophy and a coupon for a free sandwich. It was the first time I've ever won anything in an athletic event. I ran the race wearing plaid shorts and a tank-top and holding a turkey baster....you know, like a dad out on a Thanksgiving stroll, but no one seemed to notice! I joke about it with my friends, and they've heard the story about a million times, but it really was a special experience. Anyway, Banjo and I will be back next year to win another trophy and sandwich. The stroller division can wait a year. In the meantime, I can try to think of a better costume....

It was about this time last year that I first started having groin pain. I barely noticed it at first. Then I started feeling a sharp pain when I would get out of the car or abduct my right leg following a run or workout. The sharp pain would never last more than a few seconds. But sometimes an achy feeling would linger for a day or so. It was annoying, but it never got any worse or any better, in fact, I ran a PR marathon on it. But this summer it seemed to be getting worse, so I started seeing a physical therapist, but nothing seemed to help, yada, yada, yada, and they found a tear on my right labrum. I've told the story a million times. I've also read the stories of others who have experienced the mysterious symptoms for 5 years before getting a definitive diagnosis and treatment, so I guess I'm lucky it only took me a year.